Wednesday, May 23, 2012

Almost There

My journey to Vanderbilt has barely begun, and yet I am learning so much. The Ivy League Connection has exposed me to my community; it has removed the veil that once hid my eyes from my own district. This program has allowed me to grow more mature, and meet the people who preside over my hometown, but most importantly it has shown me the passion and ambition of the people in this community.

As a high school student, I am constantly surrounded by high school students who are complacent with their academic achievements. Naturally, I thought the majority of the people in this district ( despite a rare few) were satisfied with where they are and never wanted to improve. I thought that education was the last thing the people of WCCUSD cared about, that I and my peers were the only ones who cared about education and progress. Boy, was I wrong.

Today at LaVonya Dejean Middle School in Richmond, I attended my very first school board meeting. All the members of the Ivy League Connection were expected to show up and present themselves to the school board, so I had a pretty good idea of what to expect for the evening. What surprised me, however, were the number of people who spoke on behalf of stopping the budget cuts on adult education. I was completely taken away with the passion in the words of the English learning speakers who stood up to give a speech in front of the board members. I respected their bravery; making a speech is nerve-racking enough, but I can't imagine having to give a speech in a tongue that is not your first language. I felt a lot closer to the people of this district than I ever did before.

After those speakers gave their speeches, Mr. Ramsey adjourned the meeting temporarily so that he could join the ILCer, their chaperones, and their parents for the annual ILC picture. After much maneuvering around, we stood there with big smiles plastered to our faces as Don snapped about 100 pictures of us ( okay, it was only 20, but it sure felt like 100).

It was a very pleasant evening that I enjoyed very much. As we drove back home from the meeting, I stared out my window at the flurry of cars passing by me on the freeway and got lost in a reverie. It suddenly hit me that there is really only a month left until I leave for Vanderbilt. A huge grin found its way upon my face as a little voice in my head said, " You're almost there."

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THE COURSES WE'LL BE TAKING

For a 3 week period between July 8th thru 27th we will be taking the following courses:

Lived Religion: The Abrahamic Faiths

Chris will dig deeper into the study of the monotheistic faiths: Judaism, Christianity, and Islam and have the opportunity to explore local religious communities to learn more about the practices of these different faiths and open their minds to three of the most widely practiced religions around the world.

Pharmacology: How Drugs Work

Yessenia and Hannah Lee will study the origins, properties, and effects of prescription and non-prescription drugs. By visiting campus labs Yessenia and her classmates will examine an array of subjects such as exactly how insulin regulates blood levels and the actual process of discovering new drugs

Yessenia will also be able to examine and discuss the moral and sociological dilemmas and controversies involving the characteristics of different medicines and how their nature has affected our world throughout the years. Yessenia is thrilled to study this exciting and intriguing class that will help her gain new perspectives on the drugs used on a daily basis.

Mystery Writing

Narges will learn about the elements of mystery writing in various works of literature. She will read classic and contemporary examples of mysteries and produce an original mystery story of her own. Narges looks forward to learning more about mysteries and adapting a new style of writing. Narges hopes to produce a thrilling mystery story rivaling those of her favorite mystery writer: the one and only Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.